“I wonder sometimes if there is more inside the City of Seven Seraphs than outside it.”

-Branna Dishane, Guard of Seedhollow on first seeing the Glarewood

City of Seven Seraphs Theme: Inspiration

Like Duality (Which hid the Puzzle of the first Shadow Lock!), the central Theme of Inspiration is entering every crack of design of the City. We see fantasy gaming as a way to experience life beyond its singular limitations–To explore the self and find the Hero Within. Our team is also striving to grant thought provoking concepts, stunning visuals, and subtle graphic symbology… all in an effort to deliver on the central theme of Inspiration in the City of Seven Seraphs.

The shadow-planar metropolis is showered from above with the primal energies of Radia, the Etherstorm, a phenomena created by a massive Ethereal Planar vortex churning high about the City. Radia serves as light and rain for the city but its emissions mostly come from demi-planar bleed from places like the Realm of Dreams, the Dread Mists or the Nightmare Lands charging the physical reality of the City emotion and power and can’t help but move its inhabitants.

The Inspiration Theme in Your Game

We here on the City of Seven Seraphs’ team believe that music can help inspire us to make amazing things for our backers and customers. So as you prep YOUR games, feel free to listen to the things going through our heads as we render this world to share with all of you!

First off, so many of our design team are listening to Florence & The Machine that we are just putting it up here at the beginning of the list because it will save time and and word count repeating it over and over. Christen says that this cover of “Stand by Me” the band did for Final Fantasy XV might be good to listen to as you imagine the journey of a Circle of Wardens through the darkness of Shadow as they patrol the Lattice or wander into the fae depths of the Glarewood:

Christen N. Sowards (Project Creator, Lead Designer, Captain Ahab) – Christen thrives on cross-pollination and organic synthesis of literary themes, dramatic reveals and strange alien vistas. He recommends “Fusion Alchemist” by Samaya if you want to know what his head feels like right now.

N. Jolly (Racial Design and Planar Mechanics) – N Jolly is busy at work crafting the living wonders of the judow. Born of the Clarity of Law, their time in the tender mercies of the kytons of the Chours of Deep Shadow transformed them into something else. Guiding his newborns in to choosing the fate of face, N Jolly recommends the soundscapes of NieR: Automata

Savannah Broadway (Parity Development): As she wanders in from other work, Savannah is letting the sounds of the Breath of the Wild Soundtrack fade away so she can fill her head with Sympathy for the Devil, her “unofficial” anthem for fiendish bargainers of the Temple of Coin.

Liz Courts (Layout & Graphic Design): As Liz weaves blindingly vivid beauty from Light and Dark (and all the lies between), she simmers in a mix of songs like Nebelhexe’s “Touch of Morpheus”, or Bastille’s “Pompeii”. When striving for deep immersion soundtracks like Hellgate: London do the trick:

Jessica Redekop (District Design) – As she stalks the streets of the Archives District painting secret libraries and deadly devices under the seemingly worthless shanties, Jess prefers the focusing assurances of repetitious rhythms like Reasonably Sound’s “Sleeplessness” to keep her focus as she evades detection by greyroot-addled ruffians and the Bookbinders’ roving guardians.

David N. Ross (Parity & District Design) – David has taken on a lot between the Eternals of the House of Heights, the etheric artists and creators of the Descendants of Dream and the soon-to-previewed Orchard District. He and Christen hold one real world Queen in pretty high esteem, the incomparable Janelle Monae! You might want to check out her poise, pageantry and sheer awesome:

Michael Sayre (Nexus Base Class Design) – Michael loves the sounds of the Scorpion King OST for penning amazing adventure and awakening the planar energy centers of the new Nexus base class. When it is time to up word count output he goes a little heavier with Blind Guardian and Black Sabbath.

Todd Stewart (Parity Design, Pesh Connoisseur & Planar Guru) – Todd delves the mysteries of the vampiric elders of the Sanguine Sovereignty and their Faith Devoured songs by Tool and Marilyn Manson help guide the words. Perhaps some shadow of Portugal the Man’s music will echo the halls of the Chyrsalis Covenants self-evolutions.

George “Loki” Williams (Parity, District and Bestiary Design) – Loki drinks in the jazz and ambient sounds of New Orleans as he circles the city as tout…. er.. tour guide for visitors. But unafraid to dig deeper for inspirations he favors less common rhythms like Kuleg Baatar as he drafts the streets and sails the starry depths of our own Port City.

Hopefully you find something in these musical suggestions that INSPIRE YOU as a gamer. And speaking of gamers….. The team is on our way to Gen Con! Look for video updates and live feeds from the 50th Anniversary of the “Greatest 4 Days in Gaming”